To think that soft plastics should be collected for recycling from people's homes?

[Medschoolmum]

Lots of "soft plastics" are labelled to say that they can be recycled at large supermarkets. In my household, we do collect these and take them to supermarket when we go shopping etc. But I know a lot of people who put them straight in the bin, either because they can't be arsed or because they don't actually go to the supermarket etc because of online shopping.

AIBU to think that there are lots of these plastics unnecessarily going into landfill and that they should be collected with the rest of our recycling instead? We have mixed recycling in our area so they must already have a process for sorting it. I don't understand why the soft plastics couldn't just be added in with this. Can anyone with better knowledge explain?

Soft plastic doesn't get recycled in my area, but I re-use bread bags etc as dog poo bags.

I'm happy to take mine to the supermarket

Our council is too cash strapped and there's other things to spend the money on

We collect soft plastics separately, put it in the boot and drop it off at the supermarket even if we aren’t shopping there on that day. It leaves a lot more space in our rubbish bin.
it’s also a visual reminder of how much stuff like crisps we are eating when I see the bag hanging in the kitchen- which came as a real shock at first

I don't understand why they don't go in with other plastic recycling in the UK, in my country soft plastic goes in the same recycling bins as other recyclable plastic (but if you live in a detached house they don't collect any recycling, have to take all of it to the big bins in the supermarket carpark - flats and terraced houses have communal bins for recycling so they're alright)

I don't really mind taking mine to the supermarket either. But my point is that most people I know just put them in the bin, so clearly some people do mind or can't be bothered, or else they don't even realise that they can do that.

Agree that waste should be standardised throughout. The waste of resource with each council having their own waste stream must be huge, reinventing the wheel, it is madness.

• Fruit and veg nets
• Plastic sauce sachets
• The film from ready meal trays and fruit tubs – ripped off and separated
• Carrier bags
• Bread bags
• Snack bags – crisps and peanuts etc.
• Biscuit, chocolate and sweets bags, wrappers, tubs
• Cling film
• Pizza wrapping film
• Flower bouquet wrappers
• Pet food wrappers
• Plastic plant pots
• Plastic coat hangers
• Dry sheets - disposable duster refills, disposable dry floor cleaning sheets for dust and hair and disposable dryer sheets

These are the soft plastics that go in the recycling in my area.

In Leeds plastic bags that stretch (bread bags etc) can go in your recycling wheelie bin, but not glass. Although this is due to change soon and glass will be allowed.

They collect tetra packs too.

Not necessarily. We have one recycling bin which takes soft plastics, other plastics, tins, paper, cardboard and drinks cartons

To be honest I'm not convinced that that much of this is recycled even if it IS put into recycling bins. Soft plastics are notoriously hard to recycle and get more toxic each time they are recycled. I think the bins/collections are more about making people feel better about their plastic waste.

I live in Ireland. Last year the processes in the recycling plants were required to change. All hard plastic, soft plastic and metal now goes in the same bin. Although hard and soft plastics must be separated e.g. lids peeled off plastic containers.

Your local Co-op might also take them which is convenient for a lot of people. I have quite a few large bags to take but I'll have to do it in smaller lots I think.

We can recycle soft and rigid plastics now. They’ve separated the recycling bins so one for paper and cardboard. The other for plastic and cans, it only started in November though but I imafginr moat councils will do something.

I was discussing this with DP last weekend.
I do collect all my soft plastics, and drop them into a supermarket facility periodically.
My general waste is now very minimal, mainly dog poo!

But I do have a lot of recycling.
I'm comfortable with the green bin - it goes to a composting facility and you can collect "soil improver" from the composted waste.
But all the recycling needs processing, which might or might not happen.

Years ago, fruit and veg used to be brought in brown paper bags - I appreciate that this is less convenient for transportation, display, etc. But the current supermarket system does create a lot more waste.

We collect ours. And then when we do click and collect at Tesco we stop and pop it in the soft recycle section by the front door. Our general rubbish bin now goes out fortnightly mostly empty.
there is talk of going to three weekly. Which would be fine for general rubbish but the recycling bin is full every week !!!

I wouldn't bother. It will probably end up washed up on a beach somewhere or in an incinerator

https://www.everydayplastic.org/blog/2023/4/4/qb9xp8ka4slgcbw376n7fgqxzzrhri

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2022-03-28/tracking-devices-reveal-where-recycling-really-goes-video

Exactly this. In my Borough we can put cardboard boxes in the recycling bin, next door Borough can’t. They have green waste collection boxes all year round, we have to book a green waste collection and can only do this between March and October and so on and so on….

Most of it doesn't get recycled unfortunately https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/aug/17/plastic-recycling-myth-what-really-happens-your-rubbish

I'm not in the UK but I face the same situation. The recycling collection takes everything but plastic bags and plastic Amazon envelopes. I keep them in the boot of my car and drop them off to the collection spot if I pass it and remember. It would be easier and I suspect more effective to either provide easily accessible (i.e. on foot) neighbourhood collection points or individual bins.

@Medschoolmum They take all of ours. We save up whatever we have from bits of packaging during the week and from the shop itself and put it in the crates to hand it back :)